Exodus 12:37 - Meaning and Application

This is the account of Israel’s departure from Egypt. Once they had been given leave to go, they set out at once and did not wait for a better time. Pharaoh was in a better mood then, but they had reason to think he would not stay that way for long, so it was no time to linger.

We are told, first, how many they were, about 600,000 men (Exodus 12:37), besides women and children. Altogether, they must have numbered well over 1,200,000. What a huge increase this was, from only seventy people in a little more than 200 years. It shows the power of God’s blessing when he says, “Be fruitful and multiply.” This also pointed ahead to the many people brought into the gospel church when it was first established, when the word of God spread powerfully and prevailed.

Second, we are told about those who went with them (Exodus 12:38): a mixed crowd left with them. Some may have wanted to leave their own land because it had been ruined by the plagues, and to try their luck with Israel. Others may have gone out of curiosity, wanting to see the solemn worship of Israel’s sacrifice to their God, which had been talked about so much. They may also have expected to see more glorious signs of God in the wilderness, after seeing his mighty works for Israel in the land of Zoan (Psalm 78:12). Most of this mixed crowd was likely an unthinking mob, following others without knowing why. We later find that they became a trouble to Israel (Numbers 11:4). It is likely that when they learned Israel would stay forty years in the wilderness, many of them left and went back to Egypt. There have always been people among God’s people who do not truly belong to them, and there are still hypocrites in the church. They cause much harm now, but in the end they will be shaken off.

Third, we are told about their goods. They took flocks and herds, very large numbers of cattle. This is mentioned because Pharaoh had long refused to let them take their property with them, and their main property was livestock (Genesis 46:32).

Fourth, we are told about the food they carried for the journey, which was very plain and limited. They had taken dough out of Egypt in their kneading bowls (Exodus 12:34). They had planned to bake it the next day, since they knew departure was close, but they were hurried out sooner than expected, by several hours. So they took the dough before it had risen. When they reached Succoth, their first stop, they baked it into unleavened cakes. These were plain enough, yet the freedom they had received made it the most joyful meal they had ever eaten. God’s servants should not live as slaves to appetite, nor be anxious to get every pleasure of the senses as high as it can go. We should be willing to make do with dry bread, even unleavened bread, rather than neglect or delay any duty God gives us. We should be like those whose food and drink is to do God’s will.

Fifth, we are told the date of this great event. It was exactly 430 years from the promise made to Abraham, as the apostle explains it (Galatians 3:17), when Abraham first came into Canaan. During all that time, the children of Israel, that is, the Hebrews, God’s chosen family, lived as strangers in a land that was not their own, whether Canaan or Egypt. For so long, the promise God made to Abraham about a settled homeland seemed to lie quiet and unfulfilled, but now at last it began to move toward fulfillment. The first day of Abraham’s descendants’ march toward Canaan was, it seems, to the very day, 430 years from the promise, “I will make you a great nation” (Genesis 12:2). See how exact God is with his timing. Even when his promises are not kept quickly, they will be fulfilled at the right time.

Sixth, we are told how memorable this night was, a night to be carefully remembered (Exodus 12:42). The events of that first night were remarkable, especially the destruction of the Egyptians and the rescue of the Israelites through it. In this, God made himself known. The ordinances connected with that night were also to be kept in memory every year. It was a night of the Lord, a special night to be celebrated in every generation. The great things God does for his people are not meant to be forgotten after a few days, but remembered through all ages, especially the work of our redemption through Christ. That first Passover night was a night of the Lord, worthy of great remembrance. But the last Passover night, the night when Christ was betrayed, and when the Passover and the rest of the ceremonial laws gave way and came to an end, was a night of the Lord even more worthy of remembrance. Then a burden heavier than Egypt’s yoke was broken from our necks, and a better land than Canaan was set before us. That was a temporary rescue, to be celebrated by that generation. This is an everlasting redemption, to be praised by glorified saints forever.